Afroptiloides sp.

Gillies, M. T., 2001, New species of Baetidae (Ephemeroptera) from the Upper River Sigi, Usambara, Tanzania, Journal of Natural History 35 (1), pp. 23-32 : 30-31

Afroptiloides sp.

(®gures 15, 16)

Afroptiloides sp. A , Gillies 1998: 53.

Imago. A relatively large species with short median spines on abdominal terga I±VII. Fore wing (®gure 15) with four to six cross-veins in outer one-third of subcostal space. Hind wing (®gure 16) with double costal spur, arising from a single promontory. Wing 8 mm.

This species is distinguished from the other known Sigi species, A. variegatum Gillies , by its much larger size and the presence of subcostal cross-veins in the fore wing. This latter character is also seen in certain species of Centroptiloides .

In the original description of A. variegatum I ®gured the costal spur as single. On re-examination it can be seen that the spur is shallowly split at the apex and should be described as bi®d. The conspicuous splitting of the apex of the spur is shown in the case of the Afroptiloides sp. described here (®gure 16).

This species is known from 1 male, 2 females from a light-trap beside the R. Sigi. The genus Afroptiloides Gillies has had a chequered history. Originally described as a subgenus of Afroptilum Gillies it was synonymized by Barber-James and McCaOEerty (1997) with Acanthiops Demoulin. This action was critically examined by Gillies (1999), as a result of which the reinstatement of Afroptiloides as a valid genus was advocated.

Without associated larval material it is impossible to determine the generic or phylogenetic relationships of this distinctive may¯y. Formal description of the species is therefore not undertaken at the present time.